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Basic Rulebook

Illus. Brad Rigney


AGE 13+
2
I:uoout:Io
Gn:uvu Youu AIIIvs
In the Magic game, you are counted among the elite spellcasters of the Multiversethe Planeswalkers.
Some are friends and others are foes. All wield terrifying magic and command armies of creatures torn
from the endless planes of reality. Your deck of cards represents all the weapons in your arsenal. It
contains the spells you know and the creatures you can summon to fight for you.
Youre here because you
want to learn the Magic: The
Gathering game, the worlds
premier trading card game. It
was the first game of its kind,
and its still the best and the
biggest.
Trading card games like
the Magic: The Gathering
game combine collectable
cards with a strategy game.
Start your collection with an
intro pack and begin battling
immediately with a ready-to-play deck.
Once youve gotten a handle on how to play,
customize your deck using cards from booster packs,
starting with the one
included in your intro
pack. You dont know
what cards youll get
in a Magic booster
pack. You just start a
collection and trade
with other players to
get the cards you want.
You can find stores
where Magic cards are sold at
www.wizards.com}locator.
The best part about a trading card game is that
its always changing. You design and build your own
unique decks, and each Magic game you play is
different. New Magic expansions are released a few
times a year, and each new expansion brings
new ways to stupefy and defeat your opponents.
Check out MagicTheGathering.com for daily
articles, insider information, and news about
upcoming sets!
Illus. Aleksi Briclot
3
Co:v:s
Co:v:s
Svt:Io 1: Tuv BnsIts
Five Colors of Mana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Parts of a Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Card Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Game Zones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Svt:Io z: Tuv BuIIoIo BIots
Making Mana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Spells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Abilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Attacking and Blocking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Building Your Own Deck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
The Golden Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Svt:Io : PInvIo n Gnmv
Get a Deck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Get a Friend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Start the Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Parts of the Turn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
The Next Turn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
The Ever-Changing Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Svt:Io (: DIvvvuv: Wnvs :o PInv
Limited Formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Multiplayer Variants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Svt:Io : GIossnuv . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Quvs:Ios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
4
Svt:Io 1: Tuv BnsIts
svt:Io 1:
Tuv BnsIts
Only one thing unites the infinite planes of the Multiverse: mana, the energy that fuels all magic. The five colors of mana
are imbued in the land itself, and a Planeswalker with a connection to a place can call upon its mana from across the sea of
ther between worlds.
Each color of mana fuels a different kind of powerful magic for you to command. For example, red spells have oR in their
costs, and tapping (turning) a Mountain gives you oR that you can spend to cast spells. Its up to you whether to master one
color or all five.
WuI:v
White is the color of law, order, and
structure. The sprawling Plains,
populated by soldiers, clerics, and
angels, provide white mana. You send
coordinated armies of smaller creatures
into battle to teach the enemy a lesson.
BIuv
Blue magic relies on trickery and
manipulation. Islands provide blue
mana, the color of the deep sea and
the endless sky. You work behind the
scenes, controlling your environment
completely before making a move.
BInt
Black magic is about death, disease, and
power at any cost. Black mana comes
from dank Swamps, where things fester
and rot. You are as selfish and twisted as
the undead creatures and unspeakable
horrors you command.
Rvo
Red magic erupts with fire, frenzy, and
storms of rock and lava. Red mana comes
from Mountains and volcanoes. You act
quickly and recklessly, channeling your wild
emotions to summon mighty dragons or
crush the ground your enemies walk on.
Guvv
Green magic is about growth,
life, and brute force. The Forests
overflow with green mana, which
represents the pulse of nature.
You empower your creatures with
the predatory might of nature and
dominate through sheer size.
FIvv CoIous ov Mnn
The Magic: The Gathering game is a strategy game played by two or more players, each of whom has a customized deck of
Magic cards. Over the course of the game, each player will take turns playing cards such as lands (which enable you to play
your other cards), creatures, sorceries, and other spells. Each player starts at 20 life. When you reduce your opponent to 0
life by attacking with creatures and playing spells, you win!
OO
Lava Axe deals 5 damage to target
player.
It can chop down a redwood in a single
stroke. Your sternum isnt going to fare
any better.
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 148/249
Brian Snoddy
o4oR Lava Axe
Sorcery
OOO
oR: Inferno Titan gets +1/+0 until end
of turn.
Whenever Inferno Titan enters the
battlefield or attacks, it deals 3 damage
divided as you choose among one, two,
or three target creatures and/or players.
6/6
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 147/249
Kev Walker
o4oRoR Inferno Titan
Creature Giant
Cnuo Tvvvs
1111111111148/24 48/249 48/249 48/24 48/24 48/2 48/249 8/ /2 8/2 48/249 249 48/249 48/249 /249 9 48/249 48/249 8/ /2 22 48/249 48/249 448/249 8 48/249 48 48 48 4 2 8/249 44 4
5
Svt:Io 1: Tuv BnsIts
Pnu:s ov n Cnuo
Mnn Cos:
Mana is the main resource in the
game. Its produced by lands, and you
spend it to cast spells. The symbols
in a cards upper right corner tell you
the cost to cast that spell. If the mana
cost reads o4oRoR, you pay four mana
of any kinds plus two red mana (from
two Mountains) to cast it.
ExvnsIo SvmsoI
This symbol tells you which Magic
set the card is from. This version
of Inferno Titan is from the Magic
2012 core set. The color of the
symbol tells you the cards rarity:
black for common cards, silver for
uncommons, gold for rares, and red-
orange for mythic rares.
CoIIvt:ou Numsvu
The collector number makes it easier to organize
your cards. For example, 147/249 means that
the card is the 147th of 249 cards in its set.
Povvu no Tououvss
Each creature card has a special box with its power and
toughness. A creatures power (the first number) is how
much damage it deals in combat. Its toughness (the second
number) is how much damage must be dealt to it in a single
turn to destroy it. (A planeswalker card has a different special
box with its loyalty here.)
Tvvv LIv
This tells you the cards card type:
artifact, creature, enchantment,
instant, land, planeswalker, or sorcery.
If the card has a subtype or supertype,
thats also listed here. For example,
Inferno Titan is a creature, and its
subtype is the creature type Giant.
Cnuo Nnmv
Every Magic card has one or more types. A cards type tells you when you can play the card and
what happens to the card after you do.
Soutvuv
A sorcery represents a magical incantation. You can cast a sorcery only during a main phase of one
of your own turns. You cant cast it when another spell is on the stack. (Youll learn about phases
and the stack in a bit.) A sorcery has its effectin other words, you follow the instructions on the
cardthen you put it into your graveyard, which is the game term for your discard pile.
Tvx: Box
This is where a cards abilities
appear. You may also find flavor text
printed in italics (like this) that tells
you something about the Magic
world. Flavor text has no effect on
game play. Some abilities have italic
reminder text to help explain what
they do.
OOO
Counter target spell.
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 47/249
David Palumbo
o1oUoU Cancel
Instant
OOO
Enchant creature
All creatures able to block enchanted
creature do so.
It makes the insignificant conspicuous,
the repulsive alluring, and the deadly
irresistible.
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 183/249
D. Alexander Gregory
o1oGoG Lure
Enchantment Aura
O
Equipped creature gets +3/+0.
Equip o3 (o3: Attach to target creature
you control. Equip only as a sorcery.)
The only blow that matters is the killing
blow.
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 209/249
Nic Klein
o3 Greatsword
Artifact Equipment
OO
The walls of the wicked will fall before
us. Ready the siege engines. We proceed
to war!
General Avitora
3/5
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 34/249
Matt Cavotta
o4oW Siege Mastodon
Creature Elephant
6
Svt:Io 1: Tuv BnsIts
Is:n:
An instant is just like a sorcery, except you can cast it just about any time you want,
even during your opponents turn or in response to another spell. Like a sorcery, an
instant has its effect, then you put it into your graveyard.
Etun:mv:
An enchantment represents a stable magical manifestation. An enchantment is a
permanent. This means two things: you can cast one only at the time you could
cast a sorcery, and after you cast one, youll put it on the table in front of you, near
your lands. (Most players keep their lands closer to them, then put their other cards
closer to the middle of the table.) The card is now on the battlefield. A card on the
battlefield is called a permanent because it sticks around permanently (well, unless
something destroys it).
Some enchantments are Auras. An Aura enters the battlefield attached to a
permanent and affects that permanent while its on the battlefield. If the enchanted
permanent leaves the battlefield, the Aura is put into its owners graveyard.
Au:Ivnt:
An artifact represents a magical relic. Like an enchantment, an artifact is a
permanent, so itll stay on the battlefield affecting the game. Most artifacts are
colorless, so you can cast one no matter what kinds of lands you have.
Some artifacts are Equipment. You can pay to attach an Equipment to a creature
you control to make that creature more powerful. If an equipped creature leaves
the battlefield, the Equipment doesntthe creature drops it and it remains on the
battlefield.
Cuvn:uuv
Creatures fight for you. Theyre permanents, but unlike any other kind of permanent,
creatures can attack and block. Each creature has power and toughness. Its power
(the first number) is how much damage it deals in combat. Its toughness (the second
number) is how much damage must be dealt to it in a single turn to destroy it.
Creatures attack and block during the combat phase.
Unlike other types of permanents, creatures enter the battlefield with summoning
sickness: a creature cant attack, or use an ability that has oT in its cost, until it has
started your turn on the battlefield under your control. You can block with a creature
or activate its other abilities no matter how long its been on the battlefield.
Artifact creatures are both artifacts and creatures. Theyre usually colorless like
other artifacts, and they can attack and block like other creatures. An artifact creature
can be affected by anything that affects artifacts, as well as anything that affects
creatures.
Cnuo :vvv Is n vvumnv:
Is tns: ns
n svvII
Is usunIIv
toIouIvss
Cn n::nt Cn sv n::ntvo
Land
Artifact
Creature
Enchantment
Planeswalker
Instant
Sorcery
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 243/249
Karl Kopinski
Mountain
Basic Land Mountain
+2
-3
-7
Sorin Markov deals 2 damage to target
creature or player and you gain 2 life.
Target opponents life total becomes 10.
You control target player during that
players next turn.
:
:
:
OOOO
4
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 109/249
Michael Komarck
o3oBoBoB Sorin Markov
Planeswalker Sorin
7
Svt:Io 1: Tuv BnsIts
PInvsvnIvu
Planeswalkers are powerful allies you can call on to fight by your side. You can cast a
planeswalker only at the time you could cast a sorcery. Theyre permanents, and each
one enters the battlefield with the number of loyalty counters indicated in its lower right
corner.
Each planeswalker has loyalty abilities that are activated by adding or removing loyalty
counters from the planeswalker. For example, the symbol @ means Put two loyalty
counters on this planeswalker and the symbol 3 means Remove three loyalty counters
from this planeswalker. You can activate one of these abilities only at the time you could
cast a sorcery and only if none of that planeswalkers loyalty abilities have been activated
yet that turn.
Your planeswalkers can be attacked by your opponents creatures (if so, you can block
as normal), and your opponents can damage them with their spells and abilities instead
of damaging you. Any damage dealt to a planeswalker causes it to lose that many loyalty
counters. If it has no loyalty counters, its put into your graveyard.
Lno
Although lands are permanents, they arent cast as spells. To play a land, just put it onto
the battlefield. This happens immediately, so no player can do anything else in response.
You can play a land only during one of your main phases while the stack is empty. You
cant play more than one land a turn.
Most lands have abilities that make mana. Youll use lands to make the mana you need
to pay for spells and abilities.
Each basic land has a mana ability that makes one mana of a particular color. Plains
make white mana ( oW ), Islands make blue mana ( oU ), Swamps make black mana ( oB ),
Mountains make red mana ( oR ), and Forests make green mana ( oG ). Any land other than
these five is a nonbasic land .
8
Svt:Io 1: Tuv BnsIts
Since the Magic game doesnt have a game board,
zones are the areas of play that exist on your table.
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 249/249
Ryan Pancoast
Forest
Basic Land Forest
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 232/249
Howard Lyon
Plains
Basic Land Plains
O
H
exproof (This creature cant be
the target of spells or abilities your
opponents control.)
The forest is my cover and I hold it
close. In such a tight em
brace there is no
room
for wickedness.
1/1
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/249
Allen Williams
oG
Gladecover Scout
Creature Elf Scout
O O
R e a c h ( T h i s c r e a t u r e c a n b l o c k
c r e a t u r e s w i t h f l y i n g . )
T h e w i l d i s a l w a y s c h a n g i n g , b u t i t
d o e s h a v e a f e w c o n s t a n t s .
G a r r u k W i l d s p e a k e r
2 / 4 & 1 9 9 3 2 0 1 1 W i z a r d s o f t h e C o a s t L L C 1 7 7 / 2 4 9R a n d y G a l l e g o s
o3 oGG i a n t S p i d e r
C r e a t u r e S p i d e r
O O
T r a m p l e ( I f t h i s c r e a t u r e w o u l d a s s i g n
e n o u g h d a m a g e t o i t s b l o c k e r s t o d e s t r o y
t h e m , y o u m a y h a v e i t a s s i g n t h e r e s t
o f i t s d a m a g e t o d e f e n d i n g p l a y e r o r
p l a n e s w a l k e r . )
3 / 2 & 1 9 9 3 2 0 1 1 W i z a r d s o f t h e C o a s t L L C 1 7 5 / 2 4 9E f r e m P a l a c i o s
oG oGG a r r u k s C o m p a n i o n
C r e a t u r e B e a s t
OO
Haste (This creature can attack and oT
as soon as it comes under your control.)
Oh, its easy enough to kill, but Im not
going anywhere near it.
Norin theWary
4/1 & 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 149/249 Kev Walker
o3oR Lightning Elemental
Creature Elemental
OO
Once hed worked out which end of the
thing was sharp, he was promoted to
guard duty.
2/1 & 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 141/249 DiTerlizzi
o1oR Goblin Piker
Creature Goblin Warrior
& 19932010 Wizards of the Coast LLC 242/249 Rob Alexander
Mountain
Basic Land Mountain
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 243/249
Karl Kopinski
M
ountain
Basic Land Mountain
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 245/249
Sam Wood
M
ountain
Basic Land Mountain
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 234/249 Rob Alexander
Island
Basic Land Island
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 237/249 Peter Mohrbacher
Island
Basic Land Island
OOO
oR: Fiery Hellhound gets +1/+0
until end of turn.
Theres nothing more exciting than a
game of fetch the still-beating heart.
2/2 & 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 130/249 Ted Galaday
o1oRoR Fiery Hellhound
Creature Elemental Hound
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 233/249
Charles Urbach
Plains
Basic Land Plains
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 248/249
Jim Nelson
Forest
Basic Land Forest
Heres what a game in progress looks like. In this
example, there arent any exiled cards, and no spells
are on the stack. (When you put a spell on the stack,
you take the card from your hand and put it in the
middle of the table until it finishes resolving.)
Bn::IvvIvIo
Ovvov:
12 life left
You
11 life left
Hno
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 242/249
Cliff Childs
Mountain
Basic Land Mountain
242/249
LLC 242
Wizards of the Coast L ds
untain ntain untain ntainn
OO
Counter target noncreature spell. Masters of the arcane savor a delicious irony. Their study of deep and complex arcana leads to such a simple end: the ability to say merely yes or no.
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 69/249
Jeremy Jarvis
o1oU
Negate
Instant
OO
ncreature spell.
e savor a delicious deep and complex ple a simple end: the he yes or no.
669/2 69/2449 9/2 /249
o OO OOoo OOOOo OO OOoo OOOO
OOO
oR: Inferno Titan gets +1/+0 until end
of turn. Whenever Inferno Titan enters the
battlefield or attacks, it deals 3 damage
divided as you choose among one, two,
or three target creatures and/or players.
6/6
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 147/249
Kev Walker
o4oRoR
Inferno Titan
Creature Giant
Hno
LIsunuv
O O
T a r g e t c r e a t u r e g e t s + 2 / + 2 a n d g a i n s f l y i n g u n t i l e n d o f t u r n .
T h e s o u t h e r n f o r t r e s s t a k e n b y i n v a d e r s ? H e h , s u r e . . . w h e n e l e p h a n t s f l y .
B r e z a r d S k e i n b o w , c a p t a i n o f t h e g u a r d
& 1 9 9 3 2 0 1 1 W i z a r d s o f t h e C o a s t L L C 2 6 / 2 4 9
r k p o s t
o1 oWM i g h t y L e a p
I n s t a n t
Gunvvvnuo
LIsunuv
OO
Draw two cards.
The key to unlocking this puzzle is within you.
Doriel, mentor of Mistral Isle
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 50/249
Howard Lyon
o2oU Divination
Sorcery
Gunvvvnuo
LIsunuv
When the game begins, your deck of cards becomes your library
(your draw pile). Its kept face down, and the cards stay in the order
they were in at the beginning of the game. No one can look at the
cards in your library, but you can know how many cards are in each
players library. Each player has his or her own library.
Hno
When you draw cards, they go to your hand, just as in most other
card games. No one except you can look at the cards in your hand.
You start the game with seven cards in your hand, and you have a
maximum hand size of seven. (You may have more than seven cards
in your hand, but you must discard down to seven at the end of each
of your turns.) Each player has his or her own hand.
Bn::IvvIvIo
You start the game with nothing on the battlefield, but this is
where the action is going to be. On each of your turns, you can
play a land from your hand. Creatures, artifacts, enchantments,
and planeswalkers also enter the battlefield after they resolve. You
can arrange your permanents however you want (we recommend
putting lands closest to you), but your opponent must be able to see
all of them and tell whether theyre tapped . This zone is shared by
both players.
Gunvvvnuo
Your graveyard is your discard pile. Your instant and sorcery
spells go to your graveyard when they resolve . Your cards go to
your graveyard if an effect causes them to be discarded , destroyed ,
sacrificed , or countered . Your planeswalkers go to your graveyard
if they lose all their loyalty counters. Your creatures go to your
graveyard if the damage theyre dealt in a single turn is equal to or
greater than their toughness, or if their toughness is reduced to 0 or
less. Cards in your graveyard are always face up and anyone can look
at them at any time. Each player has his or her own graveyard.
Tuv S:nt
Spells and abilities exist on the stack. They wait there to resolve until
both players choose not to cast any new spells or activate any new
abilities. Then the last spell or ability that was put onto the stack
resolves, and players get a chance to cast spells and activate abilities
again. (Youll learn more about casting spells and activating abilities
in the next section.) This zone is shared by both players.
Gnmv Zovs
ExIIv
If a spell or ability exiles a card, that card is put in a game area thats set apart from the rest of the game. The card will remain
there forever, unless whatever put it there is able to bring it back. Exiled cards are normally face up. This zone is shared by
both players.
O O
E n c h a n t c r e a t u r e
E n c h a n t e d c r e a t u r e c a n t a t t a c k o r
b l o c k .
F o r t h e f i r s t t i m e i n h i s l i f e , G r a k k f e l t a
l i t t l e w a r m a n d f u z z y i n s i d e .
& 1 9 9 3 2 0 1 1 W i z a r d s o f t h e C o a s t L L C 2 8 / 2 4 9R o b e r t B l i s s
o1 oWP a c i f i s m
E n c h a n t m e n t A u r a
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 236/249
Michael Komarck
Island
Basic Land
Island
9
This section describes the actions that youll take during a game. Youll learn how to make mana, which is the resource you
need to cast spells. Youll learn how to cast a spell, as well as how to use abilities. Youll also learn how to attack and block with
your creatures. The section finishes with a brief description of how to build your first deck and an explanation of the games
Golden Rule.
To do just about anything else in the game, you first
need to be able to make mana. Think of mana as Magic
moneyits what you use to pay most costs. Each mana
is either one of the five Magic colors or is colorless .
When a cost requires colored mana, youll see colored
mana symbols ( oW for white, oU for blue, oB for black, oR
for red, oG for green). When any kind of mana can be
used to pay the cost, youll see a symbol with a number
in it (like o2 ).
Where does mana come from? Nearly every land in
the game has an ability that produces mana. Basic lands
just have a large mana symbol in their text boxes to show
thisyou can tap one of them to add one mana of that
color to your mana pool. (Your mana pool is where mana
is stored until you spend it.) Other lands, as well as some
creatures, artifacts, and spells, may also make mana.
Theyll say something like Add oG to your mana pool.
Mana that youve made doesnt last forever. At the end
of each step or phase of the turn, any unused mana in
your mana pool disappears. This doesnt happen often
because usually youll only make mana when you need it
to cast a spell or activate an ability.
O
oT: Goblin Fireslinger deals 1
damage to target player.
A rock between your eyes hurts. A
burning rock between your eyes ruins
your whole day.
1/1
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 139/249
Pete Venters
oR Goblin Fireslinger
Creature Goblin Warrior
Goblin Goblin Goblin oblin Goblin Firesli Firesli Firesli Fire nger dea nger dea nger dea ddeals 1 ls 1 ls 1
mage t mage t mage to target o target o target o targ player. player. player. player..
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Tnvvvo
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TnvvIo
To tap a card is to turn it sideways. You do this when you use a land to make
mana, when you attack with a creature, or when you activate an ability that
has the oT symbol as part of its cost (oT means tap this permanent).
When a permanent is tapped, that usually means its been used for the
turn. You cant tap it again until its been untapped (straightened out).
At the beginning of each of your turns, you untap your tapped cards so
you can use them again.
MnIo Mnn
svt:Io z:
Tuv BuIIoIo BIots
Svt:Io z: Tuv BuIIoIo BIots
Plains
Island
Swamp
Mountain
Forest
oW (white)
oU (blue)
oB (black)
oR (red)
oG (green)
Cn sv :nvvvo vou BnsIt Ino :vvv
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 232/249
Howard Lyon
Plains
Basic Land Plains

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Svt:Io z: Tuv BuIIoIo BIots
SvvIIs
O
Destroy target green or white creature.
Let the final vision of doom be etched
upon their unblinking eyes.
Zul Ashur, lich lord
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 90/249
Steven Belledin
oB
Deathmark
Sorcery
Tnuov:
When you see the word
target on a spell or ability,
you have to choose one or
more things for the spell or
ability to affect. Youll be
able to choose only certain
kinds of things, such as
target enchantment or
target creature or player.
You choose the targets for a spell when you
cast it, and you choose targets for an activated
ability when you activate it. If you cant meet the
targeting requirements, you cant cast the spell
or activate the activated ability. Once you choose
targets, you cant change your mind later.
When the spell or ability resolves, it checks the
targets to make sure theyre still legal (theyre still
there, and they match the requirements stated by
the spell or ability). If a target isnt legal, the spell
or ability cant affect it. If none of the targets are
legal, the spell or ability is countered and does
nothing at all.
Cns:Io n SvvII
To cast a spell, take the card you want to cast from your
hand, show it to your opponent, and put it on the stack.
(The stack is the game zone where spells live. Its usually in
the middle of the table.)
There are a few choices that you need to make right now.
If the spell is an instant or sorcery and says Choose one ,
you choose which of the options youre using. If the spell is
an instant or sorcery and it has a target, you choose what (or
who) that target is. Aura spells also target the permanents
theyll enchant. If the spell has oX in its cost, you choose
what number X stands for. Other choices will be made later,
when the spell resolves.
Now check what the spells cost is. Tap your lands to
produce the mana necessary to pay that cost, and pay it.
Once you do that, the spell has been cast.
RvsvooIo :o n SvvII
The spell doesnt resolve (have its effect) right awayit has
to wait on the stack. Each player, including you, now gets a
chance to cast an instant or activate an activated ability in
response. If a player does, that instant or ability goes on the
stack on top of what was already waiting there. When all
players decline to do anything, the top spell or ability on the
stack will resolve.
RvsoIvIo n SvvII
When a spell resolves, one of two things happens. If the
spell is an instant or sorcery, it has its effect (in other words,
you follow the instructions on the card), then you put the
card into your graveyard. If the spell is a creature, artifact,
enchantment, or planeswalker, you put the card on the table
in front of you, near your lands. The card is now on the
battlefield. Any of your cards on the battlefield is called a
permanent because it sticks around permanently (well, until
something happens to it). Many permanents have abilities,
which is text on them that affects the game.
After a spell or ability resolves, both players get the
chance to play something new. If no one does, the next thing
waiting on the stack will resolve (or if the stack is empty, the
current part of the turn will end and the game will proceed
to the next part). If either player plays something new, it
goes on top of the stack and the process repeats.
Turn the page to see examples of spells on the stack.
Now that you can make mana, youll want to use it to cast spells. All cards except lands are cast as spells. You can cast
sorceries, creatures, artifacts, enchantments, and planeswalkers only during one of your main phases when theres nothing
else on the stack. Instants can be cast at any time.
The Incinerate goes on the stack on top
of Titanic Growth so it resolves first.
It deals 3 damage to Runeclaw Bear
enough to destroy it! When the Titanic
Growth tries to resolve, its only target
is no longer on the battlefield, so its
countered (it does nothing).
What would happen if the Titanic Growth were cast first?
ExnmvIvs ov SvvIIs o :uv S:nt
Youu tuvn:uuv o :uv sn::IvvIvIo
2
Youu svvII o :uv s:nt
1
Ovvov:s svvII
o :uv s:nt
1
Your opponent casts Incinerate targeting
your Runeclaw Bear, a 2/2 creature. The
Incinerate goes on the stack.
2
You respond to the Incinerate by casting
Titanic Growth on your Runeclaw Bear.
Titanic Growth goes on the stack, on top
of Incinerate .
3
3
4
You and your opponent both decline to
do anything else. Titanic Growth resolves,
making the Runeclaw Bear 6/6 until the
end of the turn.
4
Then the Incinerate resolves, dealing 3
damage to the pumped-up Runeclaw Bear.
Thats not enough to destroy it.
11
Svt:Io z: Tuv BuIIoIo BIots
OOO
Flying
Vigilance (Attacking doesnt cause this
creature to tap.)
Follow the light. In its absence, follow her.
4/4
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 33/249
Greg Staples
o3oWoW
Serra Angel
Creature Angel
OOO
Creatures you control have flying.
Why fight over scraps of land when
theres so much sky waiting to be
claimed?
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 61/249
Jim Murray
o2oUoU Levitation
Enchantment
OO
When Stonehorn Dignitary enters
the battlefield, target opponent
skips his or her next combat phase.
It did not escape the ambassadors
notice that the sound of war drums
could also marshal the city to attention.
1/4
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 37/249
Dave Kendall
o3oW Stonehorn Dignitary
Creature Rhino Soldier
OOO
oR: Fiery Hellhound gets +1/+0
until end of turn.
Theres nothing more exciting than a
game of fetch the still-beating heart.
2/2
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 130/249
Ted Galaday
o1oRoR Fiery Hellhound
Creature Elemental Hound
12
As you start to accumulate permanents on the battlefield, the game will change. Thats because many permanents have
text on them that affects the game. This text tells you a permanents abilities. There are three different kinds of abilities a
permanent can have: static abilities, triggered abilities, and activated abilities .
S:n:It AsIII:Ivs
A static ability is text that is always true while that card is on the battlefield. For example,
Levitation is an enchantment with the ability Creatures you control have flying. You dont
activate a static ability. It just does what it says.
TuIoovuvo AsIII:Ivs
A triggered ability is text that happens when a specific event occurs in the game. For example,
Stonehorn Dignitary is a creature with the ability When Stonehorn Dignitary enters the
battlefield, target opponent skips his or her next combat phase.
Each triggered ability starts with the word when, whenever, or at. You dont activate a
triggered ability. It automatically triggers whenever the first part of the ability happens. The
ability goes on the stack just like a spell, and resolves just like a spell. If the ability triggers but
then the permanent the ability came from leaves the battlefield, the ability will still resolve.
You cant choose to delay or ignore a triggered ability. However, if the ability targets
something or someone but you cant choose a legal target for it, the ability wont do anything.
At:Ivn:vo AsIII:Ivs
An activated ability is an ability that you can activate whenever you want, as long as you can
pay the cost. For example, Fiery Hellhound is a creature with the ability oR: Fiery Hellhound
gets +1/+0 until end of turn.
Each activated ability has a cost, then a colon (:), then an effect. Activating one works
exactly like casting an instant spell, except theres no card to put on the stack. The ability goes
on the stack just like a spell, and resolves just like a spell. If you activate an ability but then the
permanent the ability came from leaves the battlefield, the ability will still resolve.
Some activated abilities contain the oT symbol in their costs. This means that you must
tap the permanent to activate the ability. You cant activate the ability if the permanent is
already tapped.
Kvvvouos
Some permanents have abilities that are shortened to a single word or phrase. Many of these
have reminder text that gives you a brief description of the abilitys effect. Keyword abilities
in the core set include deathtouch, defender, enchant, equip, first strike, flash, flying, haste,
hexproof, landwalk (such as swampwalk or forestwalk), lifelink, protection, reach, trample, and
vigilance. Most of these are static abilities, but keyword abilities can also be triggered abilities
or activated abilities. Detailed explanations of each of these abilities can be found in the
glossary at the end of this rulebook.
AsIII:Ivs
Svt:Io z: Tuv BuIIoIo BIots
13
Svt:Io z: Tuv BuIIoIo BIots
A::ntIo no BIotIo
The primary way to win the game is to attack with your
creatures. If a creature thats attacking your opponent isnt
blocked, it deals damage equal to its power to him or her.
It doesnt take that many hits to drop your opponent all the
way from 20 life to 0!
The middle of each turn is the combat phase. (Youll learn
about the parts of the turn in a bit.) In your combat phase,
you choose which of your creatures will attack, and you
choose who or what they will attack. Each one can attack
your opponent or one of your opponents planeswalkers,
but not any of his or her creatures. You tap the attacking
creatures. They all attack at the same time, even if theyre
attacking different things. You can attack with a creature
only if its untapped, and only if it was on the battlefield
under your control when the turn began.
Your opponent chooses which of his or her creatures will
block. Tapped creatures cant be declared as blockers. For
blocking, it doesnt matter how long the creature has been
on the battlefield. Each creature can block only one attacker,
but multiple blockers can gang up on a single attacking
creature. If that happens, the attacking player orders the
blockers to show which is first in line for damage, which is
second, and so on. Creatures dont have to block.
After all blockers are chosen, combat damage is assigned.
Each creatureboth attackers and blockersdeals damage
equal to its power.
An attacking creature that isnt blocked deals damage to
the player or planeswalker its attacking.
An attacking creature that is blocked deals damage to the
blocking creatures. If one of your attacking creatures is
blocked by multiple creatures, you decide how to divide
its combat damage among them. You must assign at least
enough damage to the first blocking creature in line to
destroy it before you can assign damage to the next one in
line, and so on.
A blocking creature deals damage to the attacker its
blocking.
If damage is dealt to your opponent, he or she loses that
much life!
If damage is dealt to your opponents planeswalker, that
many loyalty counters are removed from it.
If a creature is dealt damage equal to or greater than its
toughness over the course of a single turn, that creature is
destroyed and goes to its owners graveyard. If a creature
takes damage that isnt lethal, that creature stays on the
battlefield, but the damage doesnt wear off until the turn
ends.
Turn the page to see an example of combat.
Illus. Michael Komarck
3
1
2
14
Svt:Io z: Tuv BuIIoIo BIots
ExnmvIv ov Comsn:
AssIo BIotvus
The defending player assigns blockers to two of
the attackers and lets the third attacker through.
Blocking choices are up to the defender.
Comsn: Dnmnov
The unblocked attacker deals 3 damage to the
defending player. The blocked attackers and the
blockers deal damage to each other. The smaller
creatures die and the bigger creatures live.
DvtInuv A::ntvus
The attacking player attacks with his three biggest
creatures and taps them. He doesnt attack with the
smallest because its too easy to destroy, and it might
be useful for blocking on the opponents next turn.
OO
When Sparkmage Apprentice enters
the battlefield, it deals 1 damage to
target creature or player.
Sparkmages are performance artists of
sorts, but pain is the price of admission.
1/1
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 158/249 Jaime Jones
o1oR Sparkmage Apprentice
Creature Human Wizard
OO
When Elvish Visionary enters the
battlefield, draw a card.
Before any major undertaking, a Cylian
elf seeks the guidance of a visionary to
learn the will of the gargantuan ancients.
1/1
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/249 D. Alexander Gregory
o1oG Elvish Visionary
Creature Elf Shaman
OO
When Borderland Ranger enters
the battlefield, you may search your
library for a basic land card, reveal
it, and put it into your hand. If you
do, shuffle your library.
Only fools and bandits use roads.
2/2
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 169/249 Jesper Ejsing
o2oG Borderland Ranger
Creature Human Scout
OO
Berserkers of Blood Ridge attacks
each turn if able.
They take a blood oath to die in battle.
So far none have failed to fulfill the
promise.
4/4
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 126/249 Karl Kopinski
o4oR Berserkers of Blood Ridge
Creature Human Berserker
OO OO
Berserkers of Blood Ri Berserkers of Blood Ri Berserkers of Blood Ridge attack dge attacks dge attacks
each turn if able. each turn if able h turn if able
They take a blood oath They take a blood oath They take a blood oath to die in battle. to die in battle. to die in battle.
So far none have faile So far none have faile So far none have failed to fulfill the d to fulfill the d to fulfill
promise. promise. promise.
4/4 4/4 4/4
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 126/249 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast L 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 126/249 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LL 9932009 Wizards of the Coast LL & 19932009 Wizards of Wiz 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 126/24 C 126/249 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 126 C 1 49 9 Ka Karl Kopinski arl Kopinsk Karl Kopinski Karl Kopinski K rl Kopinsk arl Kopinski l Kopinski Ka p
o OOOoo OOOOOOo OOOOoo OOOOOOO Berserkers of Bloo Berserkers of Bloo Berserkers of Bloo ker k d Ridge d Ridge d Ridge
Creature Human Berse Creature H Creature Human Berse man Berse H rker rke rker
O
O
Berserkers of Blood R
idge attacks
each turn if able.
They take a blood oath to die in battle.
So far none have failed to fulfill the
prom
ise.
4/4
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 126/249
Karl Kopinski
o4
oR
Berserkers of Blood Ridge
Creature
Hum
an Berserker
OO
Well scale these cliffs, traverse Brittle Bridge,
and then fight our way down the volcanic
slopes on the other side.
Isnt the shortest route through the canyon?
Yes.
So shouldnt we
No.
3/3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 130/249 Steve Prescott
o3oR Canyon Minotaur
Creature Minotaur Warrior
OO OO
Well scale these cliffs, Well scale these cliffs, Well scale these cliffs, traverse Brittle Bridge, traverse Brittle Bridge, traverse Brittle Bridge,
and then fight our way dow and then fight our way dow then fight our way down the volcanic n the volcanic n the volcanic
slopes on the other side. slopes on the other side. slopes on the other side
Isnt the shortest route Isnt the shortest ro Isnt the shortest route through the canyon? through the canyon? hrough the canyon?
Yes. Yes Yes.
So shouldnt we So shouldnt we So shouldnt we
No. N No
3/3 3/3 3/3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 130/249 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LL & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LL 19932009 932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 130 32009 Wizards of the Coast LL & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC Wiz 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 130/24 e Coast LLC 130/2 C 130/249 Wizards of the Coast LLC 1 49 Steve Prescott Stteve Prescott eve Presco eve Prescot Steve Prescott eve Prescott re Presco sco teve Prescott eve Presco ot St e
o OOOoo OOOOOOo OOOOoo OOOOOOOO Canyon Minotaur Canyon Minotaur Canyon Min n MM
Creature Minotaur Wa Creature M reature Minotaur Wa ature Minotaur Wa M rrior rrio rrior
O
O
W
ell scale these cliffs, traverse Brittle Bridge,
and then fight our way down the volcanic
slopes on the other side.
Isnt the shortest route through the canyon?
Yes.
So shouldnt we

N
o.
3/3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 130/249
Steve Prescott
o3
oR
Canyon M
inotaur
Creature
M
inotaur W
arrior
O
Jackal Familiar cant attack or block
alone.
Let the gray-hairs keep their ravens and
drakes. My familiar will be a reflection
of me: bloodthirsty, with a predators
instinct.
Taivang, barbarian warlord
2/2
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143/249 Alex Horley-Orlandelli
oR Jackal Familiar
Creature Hound
OO
Jackal Familiar cant at Jackal Familiar cant at Jackal Familiar cant attack or block tack or bloc tack or blo
alone. alone. lone
Let the gray-hairs keep he gray-hairs keep et the gray-hairs keep their ravens and their ravens and their ravens and
drakes. My familiar will drakes. My familiar will drakes. My familiar will be a reflection be a reflection be a reflection
of me: bloodthirsty, wit of me: bloodthirsty, wit of me: bloodthirsty, with a predators h a predat h a predators
instinct. insti instinct.
Taivang, barbarian warl Taivang, barbarian warl Taivang, barbarian war ord ordd
2/2 2/2 2/2
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast L & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143/24 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LL 932009 Wizards o 2 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LL Wi 932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143/249 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143/24 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143 1 /24 ast LLC 143/249 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LL Alex Horley-Orlandell Alex Horley-Orlandelli Alex Horley- ex Horley-Orlandelli x Horley-Orlandell Alex Horley-Orlandelli ey Orlandelli Orlande Alex Horley-Orlan ex Horley-Orlannde Alex Horley-Orlande or Alex Horley-Orlande
o OOOoo OOOOOO Jackal Familiar Jackal Familiar Jackal Familia Fam a
Creature Hound Creature H reature Hound ture Hound H
O
Jackal Fam
iliar cant attack or block
alone.
Let the gray-hairs keep their ravens and
drakes. M
y fam
iliar will be a reflection
of m
e: bloodthirsty, with a predators
instinct.

Taivang, barbarian warlord


2/2
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143/249
Alex Horley-Orlandelli
oR
Jackal Fam
iliar
Creature
Hound
OO
The centaurs are truly free. Never will
they be tamed by temptation or controlled
by fear.They live in total harmony, a feat
not yet achieved by our kind.
Ramal, sage of Westgate
3/3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 172/249 Vance Kovacs
o2oG Centaur Courser
Creature Centaur Warrior
1}1 3}3 2}2
4}4 2}2 1}1 3}3
A::ntIo PInvvu
DvvvoIo PInvvu
OO
When Sparkmage Apprentice enters
the battlefield, it deals 1 damage to
target creature or player.
Sparkmages are performance artists of
sorts, but pain is the price of admission.
1/1
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 158/249 Jaime Jones
o1oR Sparkmage Apprentice
Creature Human Wizard
OO
When Elvish Visionary enters the
battlefield, draw a card.
Before any major undertaking, a Cylian
elf seeks the guidance of a visionary to
learn the will of the gargantuan ancients.
1/1
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/249 D. Alexander Gregory
o1oG Elvish Visionary
Creature Elf Shaman
OO
When Borderland Ranger enters
the battlefield, you may search your
library for a basic land card, reveal
it, and put it into your hand. If you
do, shuffle your library.
Only fools and bandits use roads.
2/2
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 169/249 Jesper Ejsing
o2oG Borderland Ranger
Creature Human Scout
O
O
Berserkers of Blood R
idge attacks
each turn if able.
They take a blood oath to die in battle.
So far none have failed to fulfill the
prom
ise.
4/4
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 126/249
Karl Kopinski
o4
oR
Berserkers of Blood Ridge
Creature
Hum
an Berserker
O
O
W
ell scale these cliffs, traverse Brittle Bridge,
and then fight our way down the volcanic
slopes on the other side.
Isnt the shortest route through the canyon?
Yes.
So shouldnt we

N
o.
3/3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 130/249
Steve Prescott
o3
oR
Canyon M
inotaur
Creature
M
inotaur W
arrior
O
Jackal Fam
iliar cant attack or block
alone.
Let the gray-hairs keep their ravens and
drakes. M
y fam
iliar will be a reflection
of m
e: bloodthirsty, with a predators
instinct.

Taivang, barbarian warlord


2/2
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143/249
Alex Horley-Orlandelli
oR
Jackal Fam
iliar
Creature
Hound
OO
The centaurs are truly free. Never will
they be tamed by temptation or controlled
by fear.They live in total harmony, a feat
not yet achieved by our kind.
Ramal, sage of Westgate
3/3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 172/249 Vance Kovacs
o2oG Centaur Courser
Creature Centaur Warrior
OO
When Elvish Visionary enters the
battlefield, draw a card.
Before any major undertaking, a Cylian
elf seeks the guidance of a visionary to
learn the will of the gargantuan ancients.
1/1
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/249 D. Alexander Gregory
o1oG Elvish Visionary
Creature Elf Shaman
OO OO OO O
When Elvish Visionary enters the
battlefield, draw a car aw a car aw d. d
Before any major undert major un aking, a Cylian
elf seeks the guidance g of a visionary to
learn the will of the gargantuan ancients.
1/1 1/1 /1
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/24 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/249 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/24 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC W 9 Wizards of the Coast LLC 17 Coast L st L D. Alexander Gregory D. Alexander Gregory D. Alexander Gregory Alexander Gregory der Gregory . Alexander Gr nder Gregory
o OOOOOoo OOOOOOOOOOo OOOOOoo OOOOOOOOOO Visionary Visionar sionary Visionary
Creature Elf Shaman Creature Elf Shaman Creature Elf Shaman reature Elf Sha
OO
The centaurs are truly free. Never will
they be tamed by temptation or controlled
by fear.They live in total harmony, a feat
not yet achieved by our kind.
Ramal, sage of Westgate
3/3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 172/249 Vance Kovacs
o2oG Centaur Courser
Creature Centaur Warrior
The centaurs are truly s a free. Never will
they be tamed by tempta ta amed by tempta y y tion or controlled
by fear.They live in t hey live in otal harmony, a feat
not yet achieved by our kind.
Ramal, sage of Westgat f e
3/3 3/3 3/3 3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 172/249 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 172/249 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 172/249 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LL & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LL 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 17 9 W Coa he Vance Kovac Vance Kovac nce Kovacs ce Kovac Vance Kovacs K ance Kova ance Kova ov
Centaur Courser Centaur Courser Centaur Cour Centaur Courser
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OO
When Sparkmage Apprentice enters
the battlefield, it deals 1 damage to
target creature or player.
Sparkmages are performance artists of
sorts, but pain is the price of admission.
1/1
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 158/249 Jaime Jones
o1oR Sparkmage Apprentice
Creature Human Wizard
O
O
Berserkers of Blood R
idge attacks
each turn if able.
They take a blood oath to die in battle.
So far none have failed to fulfill the
prom
ise.
4/4
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 126/249
Karl Kopinski
o4
oR
Berserkers of Blood Ridge
Creature
Hum
an Berserker
O
O
W
ell scale these cliffs, traverse Brittle Bridge,
and then fight our way down the volcanic
slopes on the other side.
Isnt the shortest route through the canyon?
Yes.
So shouldnt we

N
o.
3/3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 130/249
Steve Prescott
o3
oR
Canyon M
inotaur
Creature
M
inotaur W
arrior
OO
When Elvish Visionary enters the
battlefield, draw a card.
Before any major undertaking, a Cylian
elf seeks the guidance of a visionary to
learn the will of the gargantuan ancients.
1/1
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/249 D. Alexander Gregory
o1oG Elvish Visionary
Creature Elf Shaman
OO OO OO OO OO
When Elvish Visionary e h Vision nters the he
battlefield, draw a car ar field, draw a card.
Before any major undert ajor un aking, a Cylian
elf seeks the guidance of a visionary to
learn the will of the g of argantuan ancients.
1/1 1/1 /1
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/249 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178 9932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178 & 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/249 2009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 178/2 D. Alexander Gregory D. Alexander Gregory D. Alexander Gregory D. Alexander Gregory Alexander Gregory d G lexander Gregor d D. Alexander Gr D. Alexander Gregory
o OO OO OO OO OO oo OOOOOOOOo OOOOOoo OOOOOOOOOO Elvish Visionary Elvish Visionary Elvish Visionary Elvish Visionary s s o a
Creature Elf Shaman Creature Elf Shaman Creature Elf Shaman Creature Elf Shaman
O
Jackal Fam
iliar cant attack or block
alone.
Let the gray-hairs keep their ravens and
drakes. M
y fam
iliar will be a reflection
of m
e: bloodthirsty, with a predators
instinct.

Taivang, barbarian warlord


2/2
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143/249
Alex Horley-Orlandelli
oR
Jackal Fam
iliar
Creature
Hound
OO
Jackal Fam
iliar cant at
Jackal Fam
iliar cant at
Jackal Fam
iliar cant attack or block
tack or block
tack or block
alone.
alone.
lone.
Let the gray-hairs keep
Let the gray-hairs keep
et the gray-hairs keep their ravens and
their ravens and
their ravens and
ir ravens and
drakes. M
y fam
iliar will
drakes. M
y fam
iliar will
drakes. M
y fam
iliar will be a reflection
be a reflection
be a reflection
of m
e: bloodthirsty, wit
of m
e: bloodthirsty, wi
of m
e: bloodthirsty, with a predators
h a predators
h a predators
instinct.
instinct.
instinct.

Taivang, barbarian warl

Taivang, barbarian wa

Taivang, barbarian warlord


ord
o
2/2
2/2
2/2
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143/24
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 14
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast L
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 143/249

2009 Wizards of the Coast LL
2009 Wizards of the Coast LLC
2009 Wizards of the Coast LLC
9WizardsoftheCoastLLC143/249
s of the Coast LL
s of the Coast LLC 143
ast LLC 143/249
LC
3/2
Alex Horley-Orla
Alex Horley-Orlandel
AAlex Horley-Orlandel
Alex Horley-Orlandelli
Alex Horley-Orlandell
Alex Horley-Orlande
ex Ho
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rlandelli
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Jackal Fam
iliar
Jackal Fam
iliar
Famam
Creature
Hound
Creature
H
Creature
Hound
H
OO
When Borderland Ranger enters
the battlefield, you may search your
library for a basic land card, reveal
it, and put it into your hand. If you
do, shuffle your library.
Only fools and bandits use roads.
2/2
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 169/249 Jesper Ejsing
o2oG Borderland Ranger
Creature Human Scout
OO
The centaurs are truly free. Never will
they be tamed by temptation or controlled
by fear.They live in total harmony, a feat
not yet achieved by our kind.
Ramal, sage of Westgate
3/3
& 19932009 Wizards of the Coast LLC 172/249 Vance Kovacs
o2oG Centaur Courser
Creature Centaur Warrior
W
ell scale these cliffs,

traverse Brittle Brid


traverse Brittle Bridge
averse Brittle Bridge,
eB
and then fight our way dow
and
waydown the volcanic
n the volcanic
n the volcanic
slop
slopes on the other side.
slopes
pes on the other side
Isn
Isnt the shortest route
Isn
test r
through the canyon?
through the canyon?
through the cany
through t
through the canyon?
hrough the canyon?
hroughthe
rough the
rough the canyon?
ough the canyon
ugh the ca
ugh the canyon?
ughgh the c
gh the canyon?
h the cany
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anyyyyyoyon?
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So shouldnt
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shouldnt we

shshouldnt
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3/3
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A::ntIo PInvvu
DvvvoIo PInvvu
Illus. D. Alexander Gregory Il Il Illlllu llu llu luuuuu lu I usss DDDDD s AAAAleexxxander Greg regoory Illlluuuu luussss. DDDD s DD... AAAAl . eexxxander Gr
15
Svt:Io z: Tuv BuIIoIo BIots
BuIIoIo Youu Ov Dvt
Tuv GoIov RuIv
You play a Magic game with your own customized deck. You build it yourself using whichever Magic cards you want. There
are two rules: your deck must have at least 60 cards, and your deck cant have more than four copies of any single card
(except for basic lands). The rest is up to you, but here are some guidelines:
Lands. A good rule of thumb is that 40% of your deck should be lands. A 60-card deck usually has about 24 lands.
Creatures. Creatures account for 15 to 25 cards in a typical 60-card deck. Choose creatures that have a variety
of mana costs. Low-cost creatures are potent early on, but high-cost creatures can quickly win a game once they
enter the battlefield.
Other cards. Artifacts, enchantments, planeswalkers, instants, and sorceries round out your deck.
After you play with your new deck for a while, you can start to customize it. Take out cards you dont feel are working well
and add new cards you want to try. The best part about trading card games is being able to play with whatever cards you
want, so start experimenting!
Once they build up their collections, Magic players often choose to build different decks for different formats. Formats
are defined by what cards can be played in them. The most popular Magic format is called Standard. It uses only the newest
sets the game has to offer. The current block, the block that was released the previous October, and the most recent core
set are all legal to play in a Standard deck. Standard events are available all year, worldwide. When youre ready to start
exploring other Magic formats, go to www.wizards.com/MagicFormats for more information.
When a Magic card contradicts the rulebook, the
card wins. For example, the rules say you have a
maximum hand size of seven. But Spellbook reads
You have no maximum hand size. Spellbook
changes the rules as long as its on the battlefield.
One of the things that makes the Magic game fun
to play is that there are individual cards that let
you break almost every rule.
16
svt:Io :
PInvIo n Gnmv
Now that you know the elements of the game and how to perform the main actions, its time to walk through a turn. This
section describes what happens in each part of a turn. In a typical game, youll skip many of these parts (for example,
nothing usually happens in the beginning of combat step). An actual Magic game is pretty casual, despite how complex the
structure may seem.
Youll need your own Magic deck. Youll also need a way to keep track of both players life totals, as well as small items to use
as counters or tokens.
When youre first getting started, you may want to pick up a ready-to-play deck, such as an intro pack, or borrow a deck
from a friend. After youve built up your collection, try building your own deck using the guidelines on page 15.
To play a game, youll need an opponent! Your opponent will play against you using his or her own deck.
Each player starts at 20 life. You win the game by
reducing your opponent to 0 life. You also win if
your opponent has to draw a card when none are
left in his or her deck, or if a spell or ability says
that you win.
Decide which player will go first. If youve just
played the same opponent, the loser of the last
game decides who goes first. Otherwise, roll a die
or flip a coin to see who gets to decide.
Each player shuffles his or her deck, then draws
a hand of seven cards to start. If you dont like your
opening hand, you can mulligan. Shuffle your hand
back into your deck and draw a new hand of six
cards. You can keep doing this, drawing a hand of
one fewer card each time, until you decide to keep
your cards.
y
Gv: n Dvt
Gv: n FuIvo
g y y g y
S:nu: :uv Gnmv
Svt:Io : PInvIo n Gnmv
Illus. D. Alexander Gregory
17
Svt:Io : PInvIo n Gnmv
Pnu:s ov :uv Tuu
Below are the parts of a turn. Each turn proceeds in the same sequence. Whenever you enter a new step or phase, any
triggered abilities that happen during that step or phase trigger and are put on the stack. The active player (the player whose
turn it is) gets to cast spells and activate abilities, then the other player does. When both players in a row decline to do
anything and nothing is waiting to resolve, the game will move to the next step.
With each part of the turn is a description of what can happen during that part, if its your turn.
1. BvoIIo Punsv
a. Untap step
You untap all your tapped permanents. On the first turn of
the game, you dont have any permanents, so you just skip
this step. No one can cast spells or activate abilities during
this step.
b. Upkeep step
This part of the turn is mentioned on a number of cards. If
something is supposed to happen just once per turn, right at
the beginning, an ability will trigger at the beginning of your
upkeep. Players can cast instants and activate abilities.
c. Draw step
You draw a card from your library. (The player who goes first
skips the draw step on his or her first turn to make up for the
advantage of going first.) Players can then cast instants and
activate abilities.
z. FIus: MnI Punsv
You can cast any number of sorceries, instants, creatures,
artifacts, enchantments, and planeswalkers, and you can
activate abilities. You can play a land during this phase, but
remember that you can play only one land during your turn.
Your opponent can cast instants and activate abilities.
. Comsn: Punsv
a. Beginning of combat step
Players can cast instants and activate abilities. This is your
opponents last chance to cast spells or activate abilities that
stop your creatures from attacking.
b. Declare attackers step
You decide which, if any, of your untapped creatures will
attack, and which player or planeswalker they will attack,
then they do so. This taps the attacking creatures. Players
can then cast instants and activate abilities.
c. Declare blockers step
Your opponent decides which, if any, of his or her untapped
creatures will block your attacking creatures, then they do so.
If multiple creatures block a single attacker, you order the
blockers to show which is first in line for damage, which
is second, and so on. Players can then cast instants and
activate abilities.
d. Combat damage step
Each attacking or blocking creature thats still on the
battlefield assigns its combat damage to the defending
player (if its attacking that player and wasnt blocked),
to a planeswalker (if its attacking that planeswalker and
wasnt blocked), to the creature or creatures blocking it,
or to the creature its blocking. If an attacking creature is
blocked by multiple creatures, you divide its combat damage
among them by assigning at least enough damage to the
first blocking creature in line to destroy it before assigning
damage to the next one in line, and so on. Once players
decide how the creatures they control will deal their combat
damage, the damage is all dealt at the same time. Players can
then cast instants and activate abilities.
e. End of combat step
Players can cast instants and activate abilities.
(. Svtoo MnI Punsv
Your second main phase is just like your first main phase.
You can cast every type of spell and activate abilities, but
your opponent can only cast instants and activate abilities.
You can play a land during this phase if you didnt during
your first main phase.
. EoIo Punsv
a. End step
Abilities that trigger at the beginning of your end step go on
the stack. Players can then cast instants and activate abilities.
b. Cleanup step
If you have more than seven cards in your hand, choose and
discard cards until you have only seven. Next, all damage
on creatures is removed and all until end of turn and
this turn effects end. No one can cast instants or activate
abilities unless an ability triggers during this step.
O
O
O
oT
: D
estroy target tapped creature.
A
n assassin is a kings m
ost trusted
courier, ensuring his m
essages are heard
by even the m
ost unw
illing recipients.
1/1
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 105/249
Mark Zug
o1
oB
oB
Royal Assassin
Creature
Hum
an Assassin
ture
tu ture.
ed ed ed d
hhheard d
eard
ear

tts. s.
/////////11111
O
oW
, oT
: Tap target creature.
The essence of a lawful society is swift
deterrence.
1/1
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 18/249
Steve Prescott
oW
Gideons Lawkeeper
Creature Human Soldier
18
Svt:Io : PInvIo n Gnmv
Now its your opponents turn. That player untaps his or her permanents and goes from there. After that player is done,
it will be your turn again. Keep going until a player is reduced to 0 life. As soon as a player has 0 life, the game ends
immediately and the other player wins!
One of the fascinating aspects of the Magic game is that
it changes from turn to turnand the cards themselves
can actually alter the rules of the game. As you play,
youll find nonland cards with abilities that produce
mana, and lands that do other things besides produce
mana. Youll find creatures with the haste ability, which
allows them to attack right away. Youll find creatures
with flying and trample, which change the rules of
combat. Youll find cards with abilities that work from
your graveyard. Youll find cards whose abilities work
together for an effect thats much more powerful than
either one could achieve alone (such as the combo of
Gideons Lawkeeper and Royal Assassin). This is a game
of discovery, of amazement, of fighting, and of tricks.
This is a game of magic.
Tuv Nvx: Tuu
Tuv Evvu-CunoIo Gnmv
Illus. D. Alexander Gregory
19
svt:Io (:
DIvvvuv: Wnvs :o PInv
Svt:Io (: DIvvvuv: Wnvs :o PInv
LImI:vo Foumn:s
You know everything you need to play a Magic game. But what kind of game will you play? Appropriately enough for a game
with so many options, there are lots of different ways to play. Everyone can start on equal footing with brand-new cards
rather than build decks in advance from the cards in their collections. You can even play with a bunch of friends, not just one.
In Limited play, each player builds his or her own deck on the spot out of a number of booster packs. In other words, your
deck is made from a limited card pool. Each deck must contain at least 40 cards (rather than the usual 60 for a Constructed
deck). The only cards you can play with are the ones opened in those packs, plus any number of basic land cards. (A 40-card
deck should have about 17 lands and about 15 creatures.)
SvnIvo Dvt (nv umsvu ov vInvvus)
In this Limited format, you build a deck out of brand-new booster packs. Each player opens six 15-card boosters and builds
a 40-card deck using the cards from his or her packs and any number of basic lands.
Boos:vu Dunv: (( :o 8 vInvvus)
In this Limited format, you select the cards youll build your deck from. Each player at the table starts with three unopened
15-card booster packs. Instead of just opening your cards and building a deck, you and the other players at the table have to
draft the cards for your decks.
At the start of a booster draft, each player opens a pack and picks the card he or she wants from it. (You cant see the
cards that the other players draft.) Then each player passes the rest of the pack to his or her left. You pick up the pack that
was passed to you, select a card, and pass the rest to your left. This process continues until all the cards have been drafted.
Next, each player opens a second pack, but this time, you pass the pack to your right. After all those cards are drafted, you
open the third pack and pass to the left again. Use your picks and any number of basic lands to build your 40-card deck.
20
Svt:Io (: DIvvvuv: Wnvs :o PInv
MuI:IvInvvu VnuIn:s
Tvo-Hvnovo GIn:
In a Two-Headed Giant game, you and a teammate play
against another two-person team. You and your teammate
can show each other your hands and discuss strategy. Your
team has a shared life total that starts at 30, you and your
teammate have a shared turn, and your teams creatures
attack the other team as a group. But you continue to have
your own individual library, control your own permanents,
spend your own mana, and so on.
Commnovu
In a Commander game, each players deck is led by the
legendary creature of his or her choicefittingly, thats
the decks commander. The rest of the deck is a specially
crafted arsenal of creatures, artifacts, and other spells,
designed to reflect the personality of that commander and
take advantage of his or her strengths. A Commander game
is best enjoyed as a Free-for-All game among 36 players,
although two-player games are also common. Find out more
about this grassroots, player-built format at
http:}}mtgcommander.net.
PInvtunsv
The Planechase variant adds a single deck of oversized plane
cards that set the location for your multiplayer battles across
the Multiverse. The planes have abilities that alter the rules
of the game. If you dont like your current surroundings,
you can try to planeswalk by rolling the planar die, but be
prepared for the occasional chaotic result!
Autuvvmv
In an Archenemy game, one player starts with 40 life and an
extra deck of oversized scheme cards. That player is known
as the archenemy. The other players play as a team and try to
defeat the archenemy.
Learn more about these and other Magic formats at www.wizards.com}MagicFormats.
In a multiplayer game, the first
time a player takes a mulligan,
he or she draws a new hand of
seven cards rather than six cards.
Subsequent hands decrease by one
card as normal.
TIvs
In a Two-Headed Giant game, the
team who plays first skips the draw
step of their first turn. In all other
multiplayer games, no player skips
the draw step of his or her first turn.
You can play a Magic game with more than two players in it. There are dozens of different ways to do so. Some of the
most popular are Two-Headed Giant and Commander, which can be played using only traditional Magic cards from your
collection. Other multiplayer variants use oversized cards or a special die to provide a unique experience for your play group.
21
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
svt:Io :
GIossnuv
o1, o2, o3, no so o, oX
One of these generic mana symbols in a cost means this
many of any type of mana. For example, o2 in a cost means
you can pay two mana of any type, such as oR and oG, or oU
and oU, or oR and one colorless mana, and so on. (If oX is in a
cost, you get to choose what number the X stands for.)
These symbols are also found in some abilities that
produce mana, like Add o1 to your mana pool. In this
context, o1 means one colorless mana. You cant use
colorless mana to pay for colored mana costs.
oW (vuI:v mnn)
One white mana. Tapping a Plains makes oW. A card with oW
in its mana cost is white.
oU (sIuv mnn)
One blue mana. Tapping an Island makes oU. A card with oU
in its mana cost is blue.
oB(sInt mnn)
One black mana. Tapping a Swamp makes oB. A card with oB
in its mana cost is black.
oR (uvo mnn)
One red mana. Tapping a Mountain makes oR. A card with
oR in its mana cost is red.
oG(ouvv mnn)
One green mana. Tapping a Forest makes oG. A card with oG
in its mana cost is green.
oT (:nv)
This symbol means tap this card
(turn it sideways to show that its
been used). It appears in activation
costs. You cant pay a oT cost if
the card is already tapped. Also,
remember that you cant pay your
creatures oT costs until the creature
starts your turn on the battlefield
under your control.
o oh1, ohoh6, no so o
Hybrid mana symbols represent a cost that can be paid with
either of two colors. For example, a cost represented by the
oh1 symbol can be paid with one white mana or one blue
mana. Its both a white and a blue mana symbol, and a card
with o oh1 in its mana cost is both white and blue.
}
Instead of numbers, some creatures have stars for their
power and toughness. This means the creatures power
and toughness are set by an ability it has rather than being
fixed numbers. For example, Dungrove Elder has an ability
that reads Dungrove Elders power and toughness are each
equal to the number of Forests you control. If you control
four Forests when Dungrove Elder enters the battlefield, it
will be 4/4. If you play more Forests later on, it will get even
bigger.
AsIII:v
Any text on a permanent (except reminder text and flavor
text) tells you the permanents abilities. There are three
kinds of abilities a permanent can have: activated abilities,
static abilities, and triggered abilities. Unless they say
otherwise, abilities work only while the permanent theyre
on is on the battlefield. Once a triggered ability triggers or
an activated ability is activated, it will resolve unless its
countered; it doesnt matter what happens to the source of
the ability once the ability goes on the stack. See Activated
Abilities on page 12.
At:Ivn:v
You activate an activated ability by putting it on the stack.
You activate an ability just as you cast a spell: announce it,
choose its targets, and pay its activation cost. See Activated
Abilities on page 12.
At:Ivn:vo nsIII:v
One of the three kinds of abilities a permanent can have. An
activated ability is always written in the form cost: effect.
See Abilities on page 12.
At:Ivv vInvvu
The player whose turn it is. The active player always gets the
first chance to cast spells and activate abilities.
AooI:IonI tos:
Some spells say they have an additional cost. To cast that
spell, you must pay both the mana cost in the upper right
corner of the card and its additional cost.
O
oT: Goblin Fireslinger deals 1
damage to target player.
A rock between your eyes hurts. A
burning rock between your eyes ruins
your whole day.
1/1
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 139/249
Pete Venters
oR Goblin Fireslinger
Creature Goblin Warrior
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& 19932011 W
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22
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
Autuvvmv
A one-on-many multiplayer variant that features oversized
scheme cards.
Au:Ivnt:
A card type. See Artifact on page 6.
Au:Ivnt: tuvn:uuv
This is both an artifact and a creature. See Creature on
page 6.
A::nt
How your creatures deal damage to your opponent.
During your combat phase, you decide which, if any, of
your untapped creatures will attack, and which player or
planeswalker they will attack, then they all do so at once.
Attacking causes creatures to tap. Creatures can attack
only players or planeswalkers, not other creatures. Your
opponent then gets a chance to block your attacking
creatures with his or her own creatures. See the explanation
of Attacking and Blocking on page 13.
A::ntIo tuvn:uuv
A creature thats attacking. A creature is attacking from the
time its declared as an attacker until the combat phase ends,
unless its somehow removed from combat. Theres no such
thing as an attacking creature outside of the combat phase.
Auun
A special type of enchantment that can be attached to a
permanent (or sometimes a player). Each Aura has the
keyword enchant followed by what it can be attached
to: enchant creature, enchant land, and so on. When
you cast an Aura spell, you choose one of the right kind of
permanent to target. When the Aura resolves, its put onto
the battlefield attached to that permanent (its not targeting
it anymore). If an Aura is ever attached to something that
doesnt match its enchant abilityor attached to nothing at
allits put into its owners graveyard.
BnsIt Ino
There are five basic lands. Plains make oW (white mana).
Islands make oU (blue mana). Swamps make oB (black mana).
Mountains make oR (red mana). Forests make oG (green
mana). They each say basic on their type line (basic is a
supertype). Lands other than these five are called nonbasic
lands.
When building a deck, you can include any number of
basic lands. You cant have more than four copies of any
other cards in your deck.
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 247/249
Volkan Baga
Forest
Basic Land Forest
BnsIt Ino :vvv
Each basic land has a subtype,
which appears after Basic
Land on its type line. These
are the basic land types, which
are the same five words as the
basic land names. Some nonbasic
lands also have basic land types.
Any land with a basic land type
has an activated ability that
makes one mana of the
appropriate color, even if it
doesnt say so in the text box. For example, every Forest
has the ability oT: Add oG to your mana pool.
Bn::IvvIvIo
A game zone. See Battlefield on page 8.
BIot
To stop an attacking creature from damaging you or one of
your planeswalkers by having it fight one of your creatures
instead. After your opponent attacks with one or more
creatures, you can have any number of your untapped
creatures block. Each one can block one attacking creature.
You can have two or more of your untapped creatures gang
up and block a single attacking creature. If an attacker is
blocked, it will deal its combat damage to the creature
blocking it instead of to the player or planeswalker it was
attacking. Blocking is optional. See the explanation of
Attacking and Blocking on page 13.
BIotvo tuvn:uuv
An attacking creature thats blocked by at least one creature.
Once a creature is blocked, it stays blocked for the rest of
the combat phaseeven if all the creatures blocking it leave
combat. In other words, once a creature is blocked, theres
no way for it to deal damage to the player or planeswalker
its attacking (unless the attacking creature has trample).
Theres no such thing as a blocked creature outside of the
combat phase.
BIotIo tuvn:uuv
A creature assigned to block an attacking creature. If a
creature blocks an attacker, the attacker deals its damage
to the blocker instead of to the player or planeswalker
its attacking. Once a creature blocks, it stays a blocking
creature for the rest of the combat phaseeven if the
creature its blocking leaves combat. Theres no such thing
as a blocking creature outside of the combat phase.
23
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
Boos:vu, soos:vu vnt
A pack of randomly assorted Magic cards. When you want
to add more cards to your collection, this is what youll get.
Most 15-card booster packs contain one rare or mythic rare
card, three uncommon cards, and eleven common cards,
including one basic land card. Find stores where Magic
cards are sold at www.wizards.com/locator.
Boos:vu Dunv:
See Limited Formats on page 19.
Cnuo :vvv
Every card in your deck has at least one card type: artifact,
creature, enchantment, instant, land, planeswalker, or
sorcery. A cards type is printed under its illustration. Some
cards, like artifact creatures, have more than one type. Some
cards also have subtypes, such as Goblin and Warrior in
Creature Goblin Warrior, or supertypes, such as basic
in Basic Land Forest.
Cns:
You cast a spell by putting it on the stack. Different kinds
of spells can be cast at different times, but the things you
have to do to cast a spell are always the same: announce
it, choose its targets (and make certain other choices right
away), and pay its cost. See Spells on page 10.
Cuoosv ov
When you see the phrase Choose one on a card, you
have to choose one option on the card when you cast it. You
cant change your mind and choose something else later on,
even if your first choice doesnt work out.
CoIou
The five Magic colors
are white, blue, black,
red, and green. If a
spell or ability tells
you to choose a color,
you must choose one
of those five. A cards
color is determined
by its mana cost. For
example, a card that
costs o1oU is blue and
a card that costs oRoW
is both red and white.
Cards with no colored mana in their mana costs, like most
artifacts, are colorless. (Colorless is not a color.) Lands are
also colorless.
Some effects can change a spell or permanents color.
For example, Target creature becomes blue until end of
turn. The new color replaces the previous colors, unless the
ability says otherwise.
CoIouIvss
Lands and most artifacts are colorless. Colorless is not a
color. If something tells you to choose a color, you cant
choose colorless.
Comsn:
In general, combat means attacking, blocking, and all the
stuff that happens during a combat phase.
Comsn: onmnov
Damage dealt by creatures due to attacking and blocking.
A creature deals combat damage equal to its power. This
damage is dealt during the combat damage step. Any other
kind of damage doesnt count as combat damage, even if its
dealt as the result of a creatures ability during combat.
Comsn: onmnov s:vv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
Comsn: vunsv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
Commno
A game zone used for objects that affect the game but arent
permanents. Some planeswalkers create emblems that go
here, and some multiplayer variants use this zone for their
oversized cards.
Commnovu
A casual variant in which each players deck is led by a
legendary creature.
Cotvov
To stop playing a game and give your opponent the victory.
You can concede a game at any time (usually if you realize
you wont be able to avoid losing). When you concede, you
lose the game.
Cos:uut:vo
A group of play formats that use decks you build in advance.
A Constructed deck must have at least 60 cards, and it
cant have more than four copies of any single card (except
for basic lands). Standard is the most popular Constructed
format.
Co:Iuous vvvvt:
An effect that lasts for some duration. These are different
24
from one-shot effects, which just happen once and dont
have a duration. You can tell how long a continuous effect
will last by reading the spell or ability it came from. For
example, it might say until end of turn. If the continuous
effect comes from a static ability, it lasts as long as the
permanent with the ability is on the battlefield.
Co:uoI
You control spells you cast and permanents that entered the
battlefield on your side. You also control abilities that come
from permanents you control.
Only you can make decisions for things you control.
If you control a permanent, only you can activate its
activated abilities. Even if you put an enchantment on your
opponents creature, you control the enchantment and its
abilities.
Some spells and abilities let you gain control of a
permanent. Most of the time, this means the card will
move from your opponents side to yours. But for Auras or
Equipment attached to other cards, the controller changes
but it doesnt move.
Co:uoIIvu
A spells controller is the player who cast it. An activated
abilitys controller is the player who activated it. A
permanents controller is the player who cast itunless
another spell or ability changes who controls it. A triggered
abilitys controller is the player who controlled the source of
the ability when it triggered.
Covvu:vo mnn tos:
The total amount of mana in a mana cost, regardless of
color. For example, a card with a mana cost of o3oUoU has a
converted mana cost of 5. A card with mana cost oRoR has a
converted mana cost of 2.
Cos:
A cost is something you have to pay to take another action.
You must pay a cost to cast a spell or activate an activated
ability. Sometimes a spell or ability will also ask you to pay
a cost when it resolves. You cant pay a cost unless you can
pay all of it. For example, if an activated abilitys cost (the
part before the :) tells you to discard a card and you have
no cards in your hand, you cant even try to pay it.
Cou:vu n svvII ou nsIII:v
To cancel out a spell or ability so it has no effect. If a spell
is countered, its removed from the stack and put into its
owners graveyard. Once a spell or ability starts to resolve,
its too late to counter it. Lands arent spells, so they cant be
countered.
Cou:vu o n vvumnv:
Some spells and abilities tell you to put a counter on a
permanent. The counter marks a change to the permanent
that lasts for as long as its on the battlefield. A counter
usually changes a creatures power and toughness or tracks
a planeswalkers current loyalty. You can use anything you
want as counters: glass beads, dice, or whatever.
Cuvn:uuv
A card type. See Creature on page 6.
Cuvn:uuv :vvv
This tells you what kind of creature a creature is, such
as Goblin, Elf, or Warrior. You find creature types in the
middle of the card after Creature . If a creature has
more than one word after the dash, the creature has all of
those creature types.
Some spells and abilities affect multiple creatures with a
certain type. For example, Goblin Chieftain reads, Other
Goblin creatures you control get +1/+1 and have haste. All
other creatures you control with the Goblin creature type
get the bonus.
Dnmnov
This is what knocks down a players life total, lowers a
planeswalkers loyalty, and destroys creatures. Attacking
and blocking creatures deal damage equal to their power.
Some spells and abilities can also deal damage. Damage
can be dealt only to creatures, planeswalkers, or players.
If a creature is dealt damage equal to or greater than its
toughness in one turn, its destroyed. If a planeswalker
is dealt damage, that many loyalty counters are removed
from it. If a player is dealt damage, its subtracted from the
players life total.
Damage is different from losing life. For example,
Smallpoxs ability reads, Each player loses 1 life, discards a
card, sacrifices a creature, then sacrifices a land. That loss
of life isnt damage, so it cant be prevented.
Dvn:u:outu
A keyword ability seen on creatures. Deathtouch is an
ability that causes a creature to deal an exceptionally
lethal form of damage to other creatures. A creature dealt
any amount of damage by a creature with deathtouch is
destroyed. If your creature with deathtouch is blocked by
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
25
multiple creatures, you can assign as little as 1 damage to
each of the blocking creatures!
Dvt
At least 60 cards of your choice, well shuffled. (Limited
formats in which players build their decks as part of the
event allow 40-card decks.) To play a Magic game, you
must have your own deck. Once the game starts, your deck
becomes your library.
DvtInuv n::ntvus s:vv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
DvtInuv sIotvus s:vv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
Dvvvovu
A keyword ability seen on creatures. Creatures with
defender cant attack.
DvvvoIo vInvvu
The player who is being attacked (or whose planeswalker is
being attacked) during a combat phase.
Dvs:uov
To move a permanent from the battlefield to its owners
graveyard. Creatures are destroyed when theyve taken
damage equal to or greater than their toughness. Also, lots
of spells and abilities can destroy permanents (without
dealing damage to them).
Sometimes permanents are put into the graveyard
without being destroyed. If a permanent is sacrificed, it isnt
destroyed, but its still put into its owners graveyard. The
same is true if a creatures toughness is reduced to 0 or less,
two legendary permanents with the same name are on the
battlefield, two planeswalkers with the same subtype are
on the battlefield, or an Aura is on the battlefield but isnt
enchanting whats described in its enchant ability.
DIvs
Dies is another way to say that a creature is put into a
graveyard from the battlefield.
DIstnuo
To take a card from your hand and put it into your
graveyard. If a spell or ability makes you discard cards, you
get to choose which cards to discardunless the spell or
ability says another player chooses the cards or you have to
discard at random.
If you have more than seven cards in your hand during
your own cleanup step, you have to discard until you have
seven.
DousIv s:uIv
A keyword ability seen on creatures. Creatures with double
strike deal their combat damage twice. When you reach
the combat damage step, check to see if any attacking or
blocking creatures have first strike or double strike. If so,
an extra combat damage step is created just for them. Only
creatures with first strike and double strike get to deal
combat damage in this step. After that, the normal combat
damage step happens. All remaining attacking and blocking
creatures, as well as the ones with double strike, deal
combat damage during this second step.
Dunv n tnuo
To take the top card of your library (deck) and put it into
your hand. You draw one card during each of your turns, at
the start of your draw step. You also draw if a spell or ability
lets you; this doesnt affect your normal draw for the turn.
If a spell or ability lets you put a card into your hand from
your library but doesnt use the word draw, it doesnt count
as drawing a card.
Dunv s:vv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
Dunv :uv onmv
The other meaning of draw is a game that ends with no
winner. For example, if a spell like Earthquake deals enough
damage so that both players drop to 0 or less life, the game
is a draw.
Evvvt:
What a spell or ability does when it resolves. There are
several types of effects: one-shot effects, continuous effects,
prevention effects, and replacement effects. You can look up
each one in this glossary.
EmsIvm
Some planeswalkers abilities create an emblem that leaves
a lasting effect on the game. Once an emblem is created, it
cant be destroyed and its abilities apply until the game ends.
Etun:
A keyword ability seen on all Auras. Its usually followed
by a description of a permanent (for example, enchant
creature or enchant land), which tells you what kind of
permanent the Aura can be attached to. When you cast the
Aura, you must target that kind of permanent. Similarly,
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
26
Auras with enchant player or enchant opponent target
a player when theyre cast. If an Aura is ever attached to
something that doesnt match its enchant ability, its put into
its owners graveyard.
Etun:vo
When an ability of an Aura
says enchanted creature (or
enchanted artifact, enchanted
land, and so on), it means the
creature the Aura is attached to.
For example, Firebreathing reads,
oR: Enchanted creature gets +1/+0
until end of turn. You can give the
bonus only to the creature that the
Firebreathing is attached to.
Etun:mv:
A card type. See Enchantment on page 6.
Eo ov tomsn: s:vv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
Eo s:vv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
E:vus :uv sn::IvvIvIo
When artifact, creature, enchantment, and planeswalker
spells resolve, they enter the battlefield as permanents.
Lands also enter the battlefield as permanents.
Some triggered abilities start with When [this
permanent] enters the battlefield, . . . . When a permanent
with an ability like this is put onto the battlefield, this ability
triggers right away. Some abilities also trigger when certain
other permanents enter the battlefield.
Some cards say they enter the battlefield tapped. These
cards dont enter the battlefield and become tappedtheyre
already tapped by the time theyre put onto the battlefield.
Similarly, creatures that enter the battlefield with [some
number of ] +1/+1 counters, or whose power or toughness
will be modified by a continuous effect, dont enter the
battlefield and then change size.
EquIv
A keyword ability seen on all Equipment. It tells you how
much it costs to attach the Equipment to one of your
creatures. It doesnt matter whether the Equipment is
unattached or is attached to a different creature. You can
activate this ability only during your main phase, when no
spells or abilities are on the stack. The equip ability targets
the creature youre moving the Equipment onto.
EquIvmv:
A type of artifact that represents a weapon, armor, or
other item that your creatures can use. When you cast
an Equipment spell, it enters the battlefield like any other
artifact. Once its on the battlefield, you can pay its equip
cost any time you could cast a sorcery to attach it to a
creature you control. You can do this even if the Equipment
is attached to another creature. Once its attached to a
creature, the Equipment then has some effect on it. If the
equipped creature leaves the battlefield, the Equipment
drops to the ground and stays on the battlefield, waiting
for you to attach it to another creature.
EvnsIo nsIII:v
A nickname for any ability that makes a creature harder to
block. Flying is the most common evasion ability.
ExIIv
A game zone. Exile is essentially a holding area for cards. If
a spell or ability exiles a card, that card is moved to the exile
zone from wherever it is. See Exile on page 8.
ExvnsIo svmsoI
See Parts of a Card on page 5.
FIus: s:uIv
A keyword ability seen on creatures. Creatures with first
strike deal their combat damage before creatures without
first strike. When you reach the combat damage step,
check to see if any attacking or blocking creatures have
first strike or double strike. If so, an extra combat damage
step is created just for them. Only creatures with first strike
and double strike get to deal combat damage in this step.
After that, the normal combat damage step happens. All
remaining attacking and blocking creatures, as well as the
ones with double strike, deal combat damage during this
second step.
FInsu
A keyword ability seen on creatures, artifacts, and
enchantments. A spell with flash can be cast any time you
could cast an instant.
FInvou :vx:
Italic text (italic text looks like this) in a cards text box thats
just for fun. Flavor text sets a tone or describes part of the
magical world of the card. If the text is in parentheses, its
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
O
Enchant creature
oR: Enchanted creature gets +1/+0
until end of turn.
The mage breathed in life-giving air
and breathed out death-bringing fire.
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 132/249
Aleksi Briclot
oR Firebreathing
Enchantment Aura
27
there to remind you about a ruleits not flavor text. Flavor
text has no effect on how the card is cast.
FIvIo
A keyword ability seen on creatures. A creature with flying
cant be blocked except by creatures with flying
or reach.
Fouvs:vnI
A kind of landwalk. See the glossary entry for Landwalk.
Gunvvvnuo
A game zone. See Graveyard on page 8.
Hno
A game zone. See Hand on page 8.
Hns:v
A keyword ability seen on creatures. A creature with haste
can attack as soon as it comes under your control. You can
also activate its activated abilities with oT in the cost.
Hvxvuoov
A keyword ability seen on permanents. A permanent with
hexproof cant be the target of spells or abilities controlled
by an opponent. The player who controls the permanent
with hexproof can still target it with spells and abilities.
Iovs:uut:IsIv
An indestructible permanent cant be destroyed by damage
or by effects that say destroy. They can still be put into
the graveyard for other reasons. See the glossary entry for
Destroy.
Is:n:
A card type. See Instant on page 6.
Is:vno
When you see this word, you know a spell or ability
creates a replacement effect. See the glossary entry for
Replacement effect.
I:ImIon:v
A keyword ability seen on creatures. A creature with
intimidate cant be blocked except by creatures that share
a color with it and/or artifact creatures. For example, a
red creature with intimidate could be blocked by a red
creature, a red-and-green creature, or any artifact creature.
Intimidate only matters when the creature with the ability
is attacking.
I:uo vnt
A pack that includes a ready-to-play deck featuring cards
from a particular set, as well as a bonus 15-card booster
pack. You can play decks from intro packs against each
other right out of the box. The Magic 2012 core set has five
intro packs. Each expansion has intro packs, too. When
youre just starting to play, modifying the deck from a
Magic intro pack is a good way to start designing your own
decks. Find stores where Magic cards are sold at
www.wizards.com}locator.
IsInovnI
A kind of landwalk. See the glossary entry for Landwalk.
Lno
A card type. See Land on page 7.
Lno :vvv
A subtype of a land. See the glossary entry for Basic land
type.
LnovnI
Landwalk is the name for a group of keyword abilities that
includes plainswalk, islandwalk, swampwalk, mountainwalk,
and forestwalk. A creature with landwalk is unblockable
if the defending player controls at least one land of the
specified type.
Lvnvvs :uv sn::IvvIvIo
A permanent leaves the battlefield when it moves from
the battlefield zone to any other zone. It might return to a
players hand from the battlefield, go to a graveyard from
the battlefield, or go to some other zone. If a card leaves
the battlefield and later returns to the battlefield, its like a
brand-new card. It doesnt remember anything from the
last time it was on the battlefield.
Lvovonuv
Legendary is a supertype, so youll find it written on the
type line before the card type. There can be only one of a
particular legendary permanent on the battlefield at a time.
If two or more legendary permanents with the same name
are ever on the battlefield at the same time, theyre all put
into their owners graveyard. This is known as the legend
rule.
LIsunuv
A game zone. See Library on page 8.
LIvv, IIvv :o:nI
Each player begins the game with 20 life. When youre dealt
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
28
damage by spells, abilities, or unblocked creatures, you
subtract the damage from your life total. If your life total
drops to 0 or less, you lose the game. If something causes
both players life totals to drop to 0 or less at the same time,
the game is a draw.
LIvvII
A keyword ability seen on permanents. Damage dealt by a
permanent with lifelink causes that permanents controller
to gain that much life, in addition to behaving like normal
damage.
LImI:vo
A group of play formats using cards from booster packs you
open just before you play. See Limited Formats on page 19.
LosIo IIvv
All damage dealt to you causes you to lose life, which is why
its subtracted from your life total. In addition, some spells
and abilities say that they cause you to lose life. This isnt the
same as damage, so it cant be prevented.
+1
-3
-6
Put a 3/3 green Beast creature token
onto the battlefield.
Draw cards equal to the greatest power
among creatures you control.
Put a 6/6 green Wurm creature token
onto the battlefield for each land you
control.
:
:
:
OOOO
3
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 174/249
D. Alexander Gregory
o2oGoGoG Garruk, Primal Hunter
Planeswalker Garruk
LovnI:v
Loyalty is a characteristic that
only planeswalkers have. Each
planeswalker card has a loyalty
number printed in its lower right
corner: thats how many loyalty
counters it gets as it enters the
battlefield. The cost to activate
one of a planeswalkers activated
abilities is to put loyalty counters
on it or remove loyalty counters
from it. Each 1 damage dealt to a
planeswalker causes a loyalty counter to be removed from it.
If a planeswalker has no loyalty counters on it, its put into
its owners graveyard. See also Planeswalker on page 7.
MnI vunsv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
Mnn
The magical energy you use to pay for spells and some
abilities. Most mana comes from tapping lands. There are
five colors of mana: oW (white), oU (blue), oB (black), oR (red),
and oG (green). Theres also colorless mana.
Mnn nsIII:v
An ability that adds mana to your mana pool. Mana abilities
can be activated abilities or triggered abilities. A mana
ability doesnt go on the stack when you activate it or it
triggersyou simply get the mana immediately.
Mnn tos:
See Parts of a Card on page 5. Also see the glossary entry
for Converted mana cost.
Mnn vooI
The place where your mana is stored until you spend it or
until the current step or phase ends.
Mn:tu
A series of games against the same opponent. Most matches
are best two out of three, so the first player to win two
games wins the match. The loser of the first game decides
who goes first in the second game, and so on.
Mou:nIvnI
A kind of landwalk. See the glossary entry for Landwalk.
MuIIIon
At the beginning of a Magic game, you draw the top seven
cards of your library. If you dont like that hand of cards for
any reason, you can mulligan. When you mulligan, your
hand is shuffled into your library and you draw a new hand
of one fewer cards. You can mulligan as many times as you
want, but you draw one fewer card each time. When both
players like their opening hands, you start playing.
MuI:ItoIouvo tnuo
A card with more than one color of mana in its mana cost.
For example, a card with the mana cost o2oBoR is both black
and red. Most multicolored cards have a gold background.
MuI:IvInvvu onmv
A Magic game that starts with more than two players in it.
See Multiplayer Variants on page 20.
Nnmv
See Parts of a Card on page 5.
When a cards name appears in its text box, the card
is referring to itself, not to any other cards with the same
name.
No-
When a spell or abilitys text refers to a nonland card or a
nonblack creature, and so on, it means a card thats not a
land, a creature thats not black, and so on.
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
29
Dragonskull Summit enters the
battlefield tapped unless you control
a Swamp or a Mountain.
oT: Add oB or oR to your mana pool.
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 225/249
Jon Foster
Dragonskull Summit
Land
NosnsIt Ino
Any land that doesnt have the
supertype basic on its type
linein other words, any land
not named Plains, Island, Swamp,
Mountain, or Forest. You cant
put more than four copies of any
one nonbasic land card into a
deck.
Ov-suo: vvvvt:
An effect that applies to the
game once, and then its done.
For example, Day of Judgment reads, Destroy all creatures.
When it resolves, its effect is done. One-shot effects differ
from continuous effects, which last for some amount of
time.
Ovvov:
A person youre playing against. If a card says an opponent,
it means one of its controllers opponents.
Ovvu
The person who started the game with the card in his or
her deck. Even if your opponent has control of one of your
permanents, youre still its owner. (If you loaned your friend
a deck, he or she will be the owner of all the cards in it
during the game.) The owner of a token is the player who
controlled it when it entered the battlefield.
PnvIo IIvv
Sometimes a spell or ability will ask you to pay life as part of
its cost. To pay life, subtract that amount of life from your
life total. You cant pay more life than you have. Paying life
isnt damage, so it cant be prevented.
Pvumnv:
A card or creature token on the battlefield. Permanents
can be artifacts, creatures, enchantments, lands, or
planeswalkers. Once a permanent is on the battlefield,
it stays there until its destroyed, sacrificed, or removed
somehow. You cant remove a permanent from the
battlefield just because you want to, even if you control
it. If a permanent leaves the battlefield and then re-enters
the battlefield, its treated like a brand-new card. It doesnt
remember anything about the last time it was on the
battlefield.
Unless they say otherwise, spells and abilities affect only
permanents. For example, Unsummon reads, Return target
creature to its owners hand. You must target a creature
on the battlefield, not a creature card in a graveyard or
anywhere else.
Pvumnv: :vvv
The permanent types are artifact, creature, enchantment,
land, and planeswalker. Permanents can have more than one
type.
Punsv
One of the main sections of a turn. There are five: beginning
phase, first main phase, combat phase, second main phase,
and ending phase. Some phases are divided into steps. If a
player has mana left over as a step or phase ends, that mana
is lost. See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
PInvtunsv
A multiplayer variant that features oversized plane cards.
PInvsvnIvu
A card type. See Planeswalker on page 7.
PInvsvnIvu :vvv
A subtype of a planeswalker. There can be only one version
of a planeswalker on the battlefield at a time. If two or more
planeswalkers with the same planeswalker type are ever
on the battlefield at the same time, theyre all put into their
owners graveyard.
PInv
You play a land by putting it onto the battlefield from your
hand. You can play a land only once each turn during one of
your main phases when nothings on the stack. Lands dont
go on the stack when you play them.
Some effects tell you to play a card. That means to play a
land or cast a spell, depending on the cards type.
PInvvu
Either you or your opponent. If a spell or ability lets you
choose a player, you can choose yourself. You cant choose
yourself if it says opponent. If youre playing a multiplayer
game (a game with more than two players), everyone in the
game is a player, including your teammates.
Povvu
The number to the left of the slash in the box in the lower
right corner of a creature card. A creature deals combat
damage equal to its power. A creature with 0 power or less
deals no damage in combat.
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
30
Puvvv:
When you see this word in the text of a spell or ability, you
know its a prevention effect.
Puvvv:Io vvvvt:
An effect that stops damage from being dealt. A prevention
effect works like a shield. If damage would be dealt but a
prevention shield is in place, some or all of that damage
isnt dealt. A prevention effect can prevent all damage a
source would deal, or it can prevent just a specific amount
of damage.
For example, Fog reads, Prevent all combat damage
that would be dealt this turn. You can cast Fog long before
combat, and its effect will hang around for the whole turn.
Then, if creatures try to deal combat damage during that
turn, Fog prevents it.
Prevention effects can prevent damage from being dealt
to creatures, to players, or both. If a prevention effect could
prevent damage from being dealt by multiple sources at the
same time, the player who would be dealt that damage, or
who controls the creature that would be dealt that damage,
chooses which source to prevent the damage from.
PuIouI:v
Since players can cast instants and activate abilities during
each others turns, the game needs a system that makes
sure only one player can do something at a time. Priority
determines, at any given time, which player can cast a spell
or activate an activated ability.
The active player (the player whose turn it is) gets priority
at the beginning of each step and each main phaseexcept
for the untap step and the cleanup step. When you get
priority, you can cast a spell, activate an activated ability,
or pass (choose to do nothing). If you do something, you
keep priority, so you make the same choice again. If you
pass, your opponent gets priority, so now he or she gets that
choice. This goes back and forth until both players pass in a
row.
When both players pass in a row, if theres a spell or ability
waiting on the stack, it resolves. Then the active player gets
priority again, and the system repeats. When both players
pass in a row, if theres no spell or ability waiting on the
stack, that part of the turn ends and the next one begins.
Puo:vt:Io
A keyword ability seen on creatures. A creature with
protection will always have protection from ________.
That something is what the creature is protected from. It
might be protection from red, for example, or protection
from Goblins. Protection does several specific things for the
creature:
All damage those kinds of sources would deal to the
creature is prevented.
The creature cant be enchanted by those kinds of Auras
or equipped by those kinds of Equipment.
The creature cant be blocked by those kinds of creatures.
The creature cant be targeted by those kinds of spells or
by abilities from those kinds of cards.
Pu: o:o :uv sn::IvvIvIo
To move a card or token into the battlefield zone. When
a spell or ability tells you to put something onto the
battlefield, thats not the same as casting it. You just put it
onto the battlefield without paying its costs.
= common
= uncommon
= rare
= mythic rare
RnuI:v
How likely it is youll
get a particular card.
There are four levels of
rarity for Magic cards:
common, uncommon,
rare, and mythic rare.
Each 15-card booster
pack typically has eleven common cards including one basic
land card, three uncommon cards, and one rare card. Some
boosters have a mythic rare card instead of a rare card.
Rvntu
A keyword ability seen on creatures. A creature with reach
can block a creature with flying. Note that a creature with
reach can be blocked by any kind of creature.
OOO
oG: Regenerate Cudgel Troll. (The next
time this creature would be destroyed
this turn, it isnt. Instead tap it, remove
all damage from it, and remove it from
combat.)
4/3
& 19932011 Wizards of the Coast LLC 169/249
Jesper Ejsing
o2oGoG Cudgel Troll
Creature Troll
Rvovvun:v
To prevent a permanent from being
destroyed later in the turn. A
regeneration effect works like a
shield. A spell or ability that says
Regenerate [a permanent] puts a
regeneration shield on that
permanent that can be used up at
any time during the turn. If a
permanent would be destroyed and
it has a regeneration shield, its not
destroyed. Instead, it becomes tapped, its removed from
combat (if its an attacking or blocking creature), and all
damage is removed from it. That regeneration shield is then
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
31
used up. The permanent never leaves the battlefield, so any
Auras, Equipment, or counters that were on it remain there.
Any unused regeneration shields go away during the
cleanup step.
Although a permanent with a regeneration shield cant
be destroyed, it can still be put into the graveyard for other
reasons. See the glossary entry for Destroy.
RvmIovu :vx:
Text in italics (italic text looks like this) in the text box that
reminds you of a rule or keyword ability. Reminder text isnt
meant to tell you all the rules for an ability. It just reminds
you of how the card works.
Rvmovv vuom tomsn:
If an effect removes a creature from combat, its not
attacking or blocking anymore. If it blocked a creature
before it was removed, the attacking creature stays
blocked, so no damage would get through to the player
or planeswalker thats being attacked. A creature thats
removed from combat neither deals nor is dealt combat
damage.
RvvIntvmv: vvvvt:
A kind of effect that waits for a particular event and then
replaces that event with a different one. Replacement effects
have the word instead in them. For example, Darksteel
Colossus reads, in part, If Darksteel Colossus would be put
into a graveyard from anywhere, reveal Darksteel Colossus
and shuffle it into its owners library instead. The effect
replaces the action of putting Darksteel Colossus into the
graveyard with the action of shuffling it into its owners
library. Darksteel Colossus never hits the graveyard at all.
RvsoIvv
When you cast a spell or activate an activated ability, or
when a triggered ability triggers, nothing happens right
away. It just goes on the stack. After each player gets a
chance to respond to it, it will resolve and its effect will
happen. If another spell or ability counters it, or if none of
its targets are legal when it tries to resolve, it wont resolve
at all (and if its a spell, its put into its owners graveyard).
Rvsvoo, I uvsvosv
To cast an instant or activate an activated ability right after
another spell or ability has been put on the stack. See the
explanation of Responding to a Spell on page 10.
RvvvnI
When you reveal a card, its shown to all the players in the
game.
SntuIvItv
To choose one of your permanents on the battlefield and
put it into its owners graveyard. You can sacrifice only
permanents you control. Sacrificing a permanent is different
from destroying it, so the permanent cant be regenerated.
You can sacrifice a permanent only if a spell or ability tells
you to, or if its part of a cost.
SvnIvo Dvt
See Limited Formats on page 19.
SuuvvIv
To randomize the order of the cards in your deck. At the
beginning of every Magic game, your deck is shuffled. Some
cards will tell you to shuffle your library as part of their
effect (usually because the effect let you look through your
library).
SIovsonuo
Magic events allow the use of a sideboarda group of extra
cards that are particularly good against certain opponents.
After you play a game against an opponent, you may move
cards from your sideboard into your main deck, then play
that opponent again. You must reset your deck to its original
configuration before playing someone new.
In Constructed formats, your sideboard consists of
exactly 15 cards. You build your sideboard as you build your
deck. Your combined deck and sideboard cant have more
than four copies of any card other than basic land cards.
Between games, you may swap in cards from your sideboard
in exchange for the same number of cards from your main
deck.
In Limited formats, all the cards you opened that arent
in your main deck are in your sideboard. Between games,
you may swap in cards from your sideboard in exchange for
the same number of cards in your main deck. You may also
simply add cards from your sideboard to your main deck.
Soutvuv
A card type. See Sorcery on page 5.
Souutv
Where damage or an ability came from. Once an ability
has gone on the stack, removing its source doesnt stop the
ability from resolving.
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
32
SvvII
All types of cards except lands are spells while youre casting
them. For example, Serra Angel is a creature card. While
youre casting it, its a creature spell. When it resolves, it
becomes a creature.
S:nt
A game zone. See The Stack on page 8.
S:nonuo
The most popular Constructed format. It uses only the
newest sets the game has to offer. The current block, the
block that was released the previous October, and the most
recent core set are all legal to play in a Standard deck. See
www.wizards.com}MagicFormats for more information.
S:n:It nsIII:v
One of the three types of abilities a permanent can have. See
Static Abilities on page 12.
S:vv
Every phase except the main phase is divided into steps.
Specific things happen during some steps. For example, you
untap your permanents during your untap step. If a player
has mana left over as a step or phase ends, that mana is lost.
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
Sus:vvv
All types of cards can have subtypes. Subtypes come after
the long dash on the type line. Subtypes of creatures are
also called creature types, subtypes of lands are called land
types, and so on. A card can have multiple subtypes or
none at all. For example, a Creature Elf Warrior has the
subtypes Elf and Warrior, but a card with just Land on its
type line doesnt have a subtype.
A few subtypes have special rules. See the glossary
entries for Aura, Equipment, Basic land types, and
Planeswalker types. Creature subtypes dont have any
special rules associated with them.
Some effects can change a permanents subtype. For
example, Target creature becomes an Elf until end of turn.
The new subtype replaces the previous subtypes of the
appropriate kind, unless the ability says otherwise.
Suvvu:vvv
All types of cards can have supertypes. Supertypes come
before the card type on the type line. For example, a Basic
Land Forest has the supertype basic, and a Legendary
Creature Human Warrior has the supertype
legendary. Supertypes have no specific correlation to card
types. Some supertypes have specific rules associated with
them.
SvnmvvnI
A kind of landwalk. See the glossary entry for Landwalk.
Tnv
To turn a card sideways. See the explanation of Tapping
on page 9.
Tnuov:
A word used in spells and abilities. See the explanation of
Target on page 10.
Tvx: sox
See Parts of a Card on page 5.
Tov
Some instants, sorceries, and abilities can create creatures.
These creatures are represented by tokens. You can use
anything you want as a token, but you should use something
that can be tapped.
Tokens are considered creatures in every way, and
theyre affected by all the rules, spells, and abilities that
affect creatures. If one of your token creatures leaves the
battlefield, however, it moves to the new zone (such as your
graveyard) and then immediately vanishes from the game.
Tououvss
The number to the right of the slash in the box in the lower
right corner of creature cards. If a creature is dealt damage
equal to or greater than its toughness in a single turn, its
destroyed. If a creatures toughness is reduced to 0 or less,
its put into its owners graveyard.
TunmvIv
A keyword ability seen on creatures. Trample is an ability
that lets a creature deal excess damage to the player or
planeswalker its attacking even if its blocked. When a
creature with trample is blocked, you have to deal at least
enough of its combat damage to the creatures blocking
it to destroy all those creatures. But if each creature is
assigned damage at least equal to its toughness, then you
can assign any of its damage thats left over to the player or
planeswalker its attacking.
TuIoovuvo nsIII:v
One of the three types of abilities a permanent can have. See
Triggered Abilities on page 12.
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
33
Tuu
Each turn is divided into phases, and most phases have
steps. See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
Parts of the Turn
1. Beginning phase
a. Untap step
b. Upkeep step
c. Draw step
2. Main phase
3. Combat phase
a. Beginning of combat step
b. Declare attackers step
c. Declare blockers step
d. Combat damage step
e. End of combat step
4. Main phase (again)
5. Ending phase
a. End step
b. Cleanup step
Tvo-Hvnovo GIn:
See Multiplayer Variants on page 20.
Tvvv IIv
See Parts of a Card on page 5.
UsIotnsIv
If an attacking creature is unblockable, its impossible for the
defending player to block it with a creature.
UsIotvo
A creature is unblocked only if its attacking and the
defending player has decided not to block it.
U:nv
To turn a tapped card upright so its ready to be used again.
See the explanation of Tapping on page 9.
U:nv s:vv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
Uvvvv s:vv
See Parts of the Turn on page 17.
VIoIIntv
A keyword ability seen on creatures. When a creature with
vigilance attacks, it doesnt become tapped.
WIIo :uv onmv
You win the game when any of the following things happens:
Your opponents life total is reduced to 0 or less.
Your opponent has to draw a card from an empty
library.
Your opponent has ten or more poison counters. (No
cards in the Magic 2012 core set can give players poison
counters.)
A spell or ability says that you win the game or your
opponent loses the game.
Your opponent concedes.
If both players would lose the game at the same time, the
game is a drawnobody wins.
Different multiplayer variants may modify the conditions
for winning the game.
X
When you see X in a mana cost or an activation cost, you
get to choose the number that X stands for. For example,
Primordial Hydra is a creature that costs oXoGoG. It has
the ability Primordial Hydra enters the battlefield with X
+1/+1 counters on it. When you cast Primordial Hydra,
you choose what number X is. If you pick four, for example,
Primordial Hydra costs o4oGoG and enters the battlefield
with four +1/+1 counters on it. If you pick one, Primordial
Hydra costs o1oGoG and gets one +1/+1 counter.
You
The word you on a spell or ability refers to the current
controller of that spell or ability.
Zov
An area of play in a Magic game. See Game Zones on
page 8.
Svt:Io : GIossnuv
34
Quvs:Ios
Visit MagicTheGathering.com or contact the office nearest you.
U.S., Canada, Asia Pacific & Latin America
www.wizards.com}customerservice
Wizards of the Coast LLC
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Original Magic Game Design: Richard Garfield
Rules Writing: Matt Tabak
Editing: Del Laugel
Art Direction: Lisa Hanson
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Original Magic Graphic Design: Jesper Myrfors, Lisa Stevens, and Christopher Rush
Thanks to all of our project team members and to the many others too numerous to mention who have contributed to the Magic game.
This rulebook was published in July 2011.
2011 Wizards of the Coast LLC, P.O. Box 707, Renton WA 98057-0707, U.S.A. Manufactured by: Hasbro SA, Route de Courroux 6, 2800
Delemont, CH. Represented by: Hasbro Europe, 2 Roundwood Ave, Stockley Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB11 1AZ, UK. Please retain company
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U.S. Pat. No. RE 37,957. 300-4791A-001-EN
RuIvsoo CuvoI:s
35
No:vs
Your Friday Night Destination
Join the community of Magic

players who play


every Friday night! From casual to competitive,
two-player to multiplayer, no matter how you
like to play, theres something for you.
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